Loomis Chaffee said goodbye to several beloved teachers who retired early in June 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Retired English teacher Mrs. Berrie Moos was among these retirees, as she sent in her letter of resignation earlier than she had initially intended.

“I wasn’t prepared to leave [Loomis], but I felt that as other teachers came back, it wasn’t fair to individual students. One student has a teacher that can be in the classroom and another has a teacher who will always be virtual, and that didn’t seem right,” Mrs. Moos said.

A member of the Loomis community for 28 years, Mrs. Moos taught all four years of English courses, most recently freshman English, College Level English III Seminar, and the College Level Senior Seminar in Literature

After her resignation, Mrs. Moos was busy preparing for her niece’s wedding. Mrs. Moos and her sister built almost the entire event together throughout much of the summer and fall.

“It was weeks of work, so I really didn’t have time to think about the fact that I wasn’t going to school,” Mrs. Moos said.

Mrs. Moos has also spent more time with her grandchildren, Nigel and Jasper; instead of reading King Lear, she plays legoes, and instead of enjoying The Great Gatsby, she reads Goodnight Moon for her grandchildren.

Mrs. Moos has stayed in touch with many of her students throughout the years and plans to continue to do so in retirement.

“A number of alumni learned of my retirement, and one of my students from about fifteen years ago sent me a beautiful bouquet of flowers the day that I would have returned to teaching. [That] was really heartwarming,” she said.

Mrs. Moos misses “everything” about Loomis, from the campus to her colleagues and her students. She also reminisces about greeting her new students every new school year.

“I miss the hustle and bustle of a new school year. The getting of the books [and] the setting up of the gradebook. I love it when the students walk in the door. When they first walk in, I shake everyone’s hand, and I just love that moment of looking into their eyes because they have expectation in [them],” Mrs. Moos said.

Another aspect of Loomis that Mrs. Moos misses is the little elements of campus beauty, like the dew on the grass, fresh snow, leaves falling, and blossoms in the spring.

“I will never be done with teaching, and I would love to be involved in the Loomis community…so if they decide that they would like to avail themselves of my services some day, I’d be thrilled to do it!” Mrs. Moos said.

Mrs. Moos recalls the Loomis community as one built to create a welcoming environment for all.

“Everyone is kind. I never met an unkind person. Everyone says hello on campus and holds the door. It’s a heartwarming place to work,” Mrs. Moos said.